Various problems arise when transporting goods with handles or in bags with handles, such as plastic shopping bags. When carrying a heavy load by hand, the weight tends to pull the plastic shopping bag handles into a tight bunch that places most of the weight of the load on a thin line across the fingers or palm of the hand, resulting in discomfort.
When carrying a lot of bags by hand, putting them down and picking them up becomes time-consuming because the plastic bag handles often separate and the items inside spill over and/or fall out of the bags. Once the items are placed back in the bags, the bag handles must be gathered together before picking the bags up or the bags must be picked up one at a time. These problems are exasperated when transporting goods in plastic shopping bags in a vehicle.
Several different types of handgrips have been designed to try to address these problems.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,257,845 to McConnell discloses a detachable hand grip for carrying bags and the like that includes a flexible flat body having a slit extending from each end for receiving the flexible handles of a shopping bag.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,199,758 to Howell discloses a rigid carrier apparatus for carrying packages formed in the configuration of a tubular body having opposite ends and a slot for spiraling through the body between the opposite ends.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,005,891 to Lunsford discloses a bag handle apparatus comprising a thin sheet of semi-rigid flexible material having a locking tab formed on one end, and a locking slot formed in a second end of the sheet. The locking tab engages the locking slot to hold the bag handle apparatus in a generally accurate shape about one or more bag handles.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,913,172 to Richards discloses an elongated block including a longitudinal channel therein opening outwardly of one longitudinal side of the block as well as its opposite ends. The channel may receive rope or equivalent shopping bag handles therein and a closure panel extending longitudinally of the block is provided for closing channel.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,722,177 to Nielsen discloses a spring-like split tubular device having overlapping longitudinal edges that close over the bag handles when placed inside the tubular device.
All of the above mentioned devices either employ a rigid material or, in the case of non-rigid materials, only provide one layer of material between the hand of the user and the handles of the bags or other items being carried. It is desirable to have a design that employs multiple layers of a non-rigid material that is less expensive. This also allows for the use of materials that have less of an environmental impact should the device be disposed of instead of reused or recycled.
Several examples available on the market today are cumbersome to carry in a purse or pocket because they are large in size and/or rigid. By employing a spiral design that can be rolled up tightly and then placed in a pocket or purse and then expanded again for use, the device becomes easier to transport.
Devices that are produced from rigid material have to include enough material for the user to comfortably grip as well as a space to accommodate the bag handles. This means that a lot of space is wasted once the device is packaged for storage and shipping. The spiral design of the device is therefore desirable because it allows for the device to be tightly rolled and secured by a band, or other means, for the purpose of taking up less space for both shipping and storage, and to take up less space at the point of sale until it reaches the end user.
Some handgrips are difficult to attach or remove. By employing a flexible material in the design, attaching and removing the handgrip is easy.
Several examples available on the market today are rigid and have to be made from material such as plastic which is difficult and expensive to print on. By employing a design that can be made from paperboard, which is easily and inexpensively printed on, retailers have a lower cost opportunity to advertise on the device.
Several examples available on the market today also create new problems for the user. They can be too heavy when putting the bags down so that the handgrip ends up inside the bags or on the ground next to the bags. By using a small amount of lightweight material, the rigidity of the bag handles is more likely to keep the attachable bag handle in a higher position.
Some handgrips are configured in a way that they have a top and bottom and end up being upside down and/or sometimes inside the bag when the bags are put down. By using a design that does not have a top or bottom, this problem is eliminated.
Shopping bag handgrips produced with moulded plastic are relatively expensive. Moreover the retail customer must keep the handgrips on their person if they wish to use them for spontaneous purchases. Often a retail customer will make enough purchases that they require both hands to carry the bags, thus doubling the expense should they choose to purchase handgrips. The disclosed design provides consumers and retailers with a low cost option.
Many consumers today are choosing reusable canvas bags. Shopping bag handles that are ridged in nature often don't fit the thicker handles of canvas bags. By employing a design using a flexible material that can be expanded at will, the consumer can use it on different sized bag handles.